Free Republic

A United States Air Force Academy Professor has argued Critical Race Theory should be taught to all cadets so that they can understand how the United States was 'shaped by racism.' Political scientist Lynne Chandler García said the Constitution brought about 'inequality' and that George Washington was a racist. She argued that the history of the U.S. proved that 'racism has shaped both foreign and domestic policy.' Garcia, who teaches the Marxist theory at the USAF Academy in Colorado Springs, said she agreed with the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Mark Milley who recently told Congress that Critical Race...

An out-of-control wildfire near some of Colorado's most visited tourist sites expanded overnight and kept some 6,000 people from their homes on Monday, as forecasts said winds could push the flames toward the U.S. Air Force Academy. The fire sent a mushroom cloud of smoke over Colorado Springs in the shadow of Pikes Peak, whose vistas helped inspire the patriotic tune "America the Beautiful." Closer to the blaze, trees were visibly torquing and twisting from the heat. The Waldo Canyon blaze came as firefighting resources were stretched by the monster High Park blaze northwest of Fort Collins, a university city...

Insitu has teamed with BOSH Global Services to train U.S. Air Force Academy cadets on the disciplines critical to planning and executing missions using unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), specifically Insitu's ScanEagle, from within the Air Forces' Air Operations Center (AOC). The training is designed to familiarize academy cadets with UAS and to give them first-hand knowledge of how these systems can be integrated into Air Force Operations to support warfighters worldwide. "ScanEagle was chosen because it is a superior system that is extremely intuitive, giving cadets a hands-on learning experience almost from day one," said U.S. Air Force Academy Lt....

WASHINGTON, May 31, 2006 – The U.S. will triumph over murderous extremists because of the daring and ingenuity of its people and armed forces, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said in his commencement address at the U.S. Air Force Academy today. Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld delivers his commencement speech to the 2006 graduating class of the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., May 31. Photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley, USN  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. "Violent extremists are trying to terrorize and intimidate free people into submitting to their will,"...

3/31/2006 - KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. (AFPN) -- “Service Before Self,” one of the Air Force’s core values, is on the minds of 135 U.S. Air Force Academy cadets who are working during their alternative spring break in areas damaged by Hurricane Katrina. The project is part of the Cadet Service Learning program which centers on community involvement. “CSL takes this core value from theoretical concepts of the classroom and a training environment,” said Maj. Eric Ecklund, of the academy’s Center for Character Development. “It allows cadets to put it to the test in real situations, meeting the needs...

We owe a great debt to Air Force Academy head football coach Fisher DeBerry. To be sure, the initial knee-jerk reaction to his recent comments about black football players being generally faster than white ones caused him to be treated like a "politically incorrect" piñata (my God, I hope I haven't offended Latinos). Upon reflection, however, his statements were so obviously true that something of an anti-PC backlash has materialized in his defense. To their credit, Sam Adams and Thierry Smith, two African-American Denver sportswriters, both agreed on their KKFN radio talk show that DeBerry's remarks weren't racist and that...

In a period of one week, the Department of Defense has decided to divest itself of its long-standing support for the Boy Scouts, and now the Superintendent of the Air Force Academy has drawn a line-in-the-sand for Christian cadets. The AF Academy has been under intense scrutiny in the past year for failing to deal appropriately with incidents of rape and allegations of sexual harassment over a period of two decades. Congress has been involved, the Air Force is under the microscope and the new commander has been under the gun to correct this gross failure of character, respect and...

The Cadet Wing at the United States Air Force Academy is under lockdown in their dorm rooms at this time. My daughter stated that they have posted Protection Forces at the Dormitory entrances (MP's with M-16's and full battle gear). The cadet's have been instructed not to use the stairways (which are glass surrounded). Rumors are running rampant including a Al- Queda possible bomb threat against the Academy chapel to a possible lone gunman.... As information flows in I will update.... Any Academy Grads with contacts please update and post...

TO: All Graduates and Friends of the AOG SUBJECT LINE: Core Values to be New Words above the Warrior Ramp Below is information we received from the Academy today regarding the new words to be used above the Warrior Ramp. Because of our commitment to keep the graduate community and our friends informed on recent developments at USAFA, we are distributing this announcement as quickly as possible. James A. Shaw, ‘67 Col, USAF (Ret) President & CEO Association of Graduates After the “Bring Me Men” words were removed from above the Warrior Ramp in March of 2003 the Academy sought...

Air Force Cadets on Edge After Scandal By ROBERT WELLER Associated Press Writer Jan 2, 4:36 PM AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AP) -- A year after the rape scandal at the Air Force Academy broke, some cadets say the atmosphere is so poisonous that they are afraid a simple request for a date or a sip of alcohol could end their careers. And some cadets warn that the once-punishing training regimen has been relaxed so much that the Air Force's effectiveness could suffer. Yet, some freshmen say they are pleased they no longer are treated "like dirt." In recent interviews...

WASHINGTON, June 8 — Senator Larry E. Craig of Idaho is blocking the promotions of more than 850 Air Force officers, including young pilots who fought in Iraq and the general nominated to bail out the scandal-plagued United States Air Force Academy, in a rare clash between the Pentagon and a senior Republican lawmaker. Mr. Craig's price to free the frozen promotions now awaiting final Senate approval? Four C-130 cargo planes for the Idaho Air National Guard. Pentagon officials express outrage that for more than a month Mr. Craig has single-handedly delayed the careers of hundreds of officers and stymied...

Critics: Hefley lets leaders duck blameVictims, their advocates and congressional leaders lashed out at U.S. Rep. Joel Hefley on Tuesday over his removal of language from a bill that would have held Air Force Academy leaders accountable for the sexual-assault scandal. Critics of the Colorado Springs Republican sent a flurry of messages to the White House in hopes of keeping President Bush from signing the measure, which could occur as early as today. Hefley's move was a "despicable watering down" of an amendment and lets generals and other academy commanders off the hook, said Beth Hills, an advocate for military...

COLORADO SPRINGS, April 10 — After months of criticism over its handling of a sexual abuse scandal, the United States Air Force Academy installed two new leaders today at a ceremony attended by thousands of cadets. "We must ensure an environment that is free of discrimination, harassment, intimidation or assault of any kind," the new commandant of cadets, Brig. Gen. Johnny A. Weida, said outside the academy's chapel. "Enough talking," General Weida told the crowd of about 4,000. "It's time for doing. Be proud, walk tall and do your part to make us better." Cadets in military dress blue uniforms...

April 2, 2003 Air Force Secretary Says Academy's Leaders Could Be PunishedBy DIANA JEAN SCHEMO ASHINGTON, April 1 — Prompted by scathing rebukes at a Senate hearing on Monday, Air Force Secretary James G. Roche today vowed to "look deeper" into the actions of top officials at the Air Force Academy and issued criteria by which they could be punished for failing to address the difficulties women cadets faced in reporting sexual assaults. Appearing today before a subcommittee of the House Armed Service Committee, Mr. Roche and Gen. John P. Jumper, the Air Force chief of staff, acknowledged the displeasure...

Please help Freep NOW. The Air Force Academy just took down their Bring Me Men sign because it offended some delicate brat... and NOW they've pulled a Peter Arnett w/ this latest women's rights(?) campaign: http://www.now.org As the Bush Administration wages war against Saddam Hussein, our hearts and thoughts go out to all those who will suffer as a result of this attack. Bush's tunnel vision is jeopardizing the women and men serving in the U.S. military and millions of lives in Iraq, where more than half of the population is children. We call for Bush to end this...

AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - Large letters reading "Bring Me Men" that critics say became a symbol of a male-dominated culture at the Air Force Academy have been removed from a stone arch that incoming cadets march beneath. The letters were taken down Friday under a directive that emerged from an Air Force investigation of a sexual assault scandal at the academy. Five leaders at the academy have been reassigned as the Air Force responds to complaints that female cadets' reports of sexual assaults haven't been taken seriously and that some of those who complained were punished. At least 56...

Saturday, March 29, 2003 - AIR FORCE ACADEMY - With the clinking of hammers, one of the most recognizable images in Colorado disappeared Friday. It was only 10 letters, each of them two feet tall: "Bring Me Men." The words stood at the base of a ramp that cadets walk up on their first day at the academy - a symbolic threshold between an old life and a new one.For 39 years, the words stood at the base of the ramp. They came down Friday in less than two hours, culminating a historic week of change at the 4,100-cadet academy.Cadets...

Air Force to Change Academy Leaders WASHINGTON (AP) - Four top officers at the Air Force Academy will be replaced - at least two of them by women - after a series of rape reports and allegations by female cadets of an academy culture that blames victims for assaults. ``The evidence indicates now that we need to have some changes in leadership at the top,'' said Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo. ``I think they're moving in the right direction.'' Air Force Secretary James Roche briefed the Senate Armed Services Committee in private Tuesday to discuss the military's response to allegations that...

Democrat U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum is blasting President Bush for his lack of sensitivity to women's issues. It appears that this woman can stand in front of an audience and with a straight face, blame President Bush for the alleged rapes and sexual assaults on female cadets at the Air Force Academy. I am not calling these female cadets liar's but I am calling Rep. McCollum a liar. She wouldn't know a womens issue if it came up and bit her in her liberal a$$. Rape is a very serious crime and the damage that it can cause is very...

There was a face behind the paperwork of the rape case. And Lisa Ballas wanted Gen. S. Taco Gilbert, commandant of cadets at the Air Force Academy, to see that face clearly across his large black office table. It was April 8, 2002, Ballas recalled, and she had asked to talk with him about court-martialing her alleged attacker, a senior cadet who she said raped her at a party. After only a couple of minutes, however, her hopes evaporated. "Any other man would have done the same that night," Gilbert told her, she said. "You need to take responsibility for...